History of Henry VI, Part II

Richard Plantagenet (Duke of Gloucester). From Ireland thus comes York to claim his right,
And pluck the crown from feeble Henry's head:
Ring, bells, aloud; burn, bonfires, clear and bright,
To entertain great England's lawful king.
2980Ah! sancta majestas, who would not buy thee dear?
Let them obey that know not how to rule;
This hand was made to handle naught but gold.
I cannot give due action to my words,
Except a sword or sceptre balance it:
2985A sceptre shall it have, have I a soul,
On which I'll toss the flower-de-luce of France.
[Enter BUCKINGHAM]Whom have we here? Buckingham, to disturb me?
The king hath sent him, sure: I must dissemble.
2990

Duke of Buckingham. A messenger from Henry, our dread liege,
To know the reason of these arms in peace;
2995Or why thou, being a subject as I am,
Against thy oath and true allegiance sworn,
Should raise so great a power without his leave,
Or dare to bring thy force so near the court.

Richard Plantagenet (Duke of Gloucester). [Aside] Scarce can I speak, my choler is so great:
3000O, I could hew up rocks and fight with flint,
I am so angry at these abject terms;
And now, like Ajax Telamonius,
On sheep or oxen could I spend my fury.
I am far better born than is the king,
3005More like a king, more kingly in my thoughts:
But I must make fair weather yet a while,
Till Henry be more weak and I more strong,—
Buckingham, I prithee, pardon me,
That I have given no answer all this while;
3010My mind was troubled with deep melancholy.
The cause why I have brought this army hither
Is to remove proud Somerset from the king,
Seditious to his grace and to the state.

Duke of Buckingham. That is too much presumption on thy part:
3015But if thy arms be to no other end,
The king hath yielded unto thy demand:
The Duke of Somerset is in the Tower.

Richard Plantagenet (Duke of Gloucester). Then, Buckingham, I do dismiss my powers.
Soldiers, I thank you all; disperse yourselves;
Meet me to-morrow in St. George's field,
You shall have pay and every thing you wish.
And let my sovereign, virtuous Henry,
3025Command my eldest son, nay, all my sons,
As pledges of my fealty and love;
I'll send them all as willing as I live:
Lands, goods, horse, armour, any thing I have,
Is his to use, so Somerset may die.
3030

Duke of Buckingham. York, I commend this kind submission:
We twain will go into his highness' tent.

[Enter KING HENRY VI and Attendants]

Henry VI. Buckingham, doth York intend no harm to us,
That thus he marcheth with thee arm in arm?
3035

Duke of Buckingham. So please it you, my lord, 'twere not amiss
3055He were created knight for his good service.

Henry VI. Iden, kneel down.
[He kneels]Rise up a knight.
We give thee for reward a thousand marks,
3060And will that thou henceforth attend on us.

Alexander Iden. May Iden live to merit such a bounty.
And never live but true unto his liege!

[Rises]

[Enter QUEEN MARGARET and SOMERSET]

Henry VI. See, Buckingham, Somerset comes with the queen:
Go, bid her hide him quickly from the duke.

Queen Margaret. For thousand Yorks he shall not hide his head,
But boldly stand and front him to his face.

Richard Plantagenet (Duke of Gloucester). How now! is Somerset at liberty?
3070Then, York, unloose thy long-imprison'd thoughts,
And let thy tongue be equal with thy heart.
Shall I endure the sight of Somerset?
False king! why hast thou broken faith with me,
Knowing how hardly I can brook abuse?
3075King did I call thee? no, thou art not king,
Not fit to govern and rule multitudes,
Which darest not, no, nor canst not rule a traitor.
That head of thine doth not become a crown;
Thy hand is made to grasp a palmer's staff,
3080And not to grace an awful princely sceptre.
That gold must round engirt these brows of mine,
Whose smile and frown, like to Achilles' spear,
Is able with the change to kill and cure.
Here is a hand to hold a sceptre up
3085And with the same to act controlling laws.
Give place: by heaven, thou shalt rule no more
O'er him whom heaven created for thy ruler.

Richard Plantagenet (Duke of Gloucester). Wouldst have me kneel? first let me ask of these,
If they can brook I bow a knee to man.
Sirrah, call in my sons to be my bail;
[Exit Attendant]3095I know, ere they will have me go to ward,
They'll pawn their swords for my enfranchisement.

Queen Margaret. Call hither Clifford! bid him come amain,
To say if that the bastard boys of York
Shall be the surety for their traitor father.
3100

[Exit BUCKINGHAM]

Richard Plantagenet (Duke of Gloucester). O blood-besotted Neapolitan,
Outcast of Naples, England's bloody scourge!
The sons of York, thy betters in their birth,
Shall be their father's bail; and bane to those
3105That for my surety will refuse the boys!
[Enter EDWARD and RICHARD]See where they come: I'll warrant they'll
make it good.

Richard Plantagenet (Duke of Gloucester). I thank thee, Clifford: say, what news with thee?
Nay, do not fright us with an angry look;
3115We are thy sovereign, Clifford, kneel again;
For thy mistaking so, we pardon thee.

Lord Clifford. This is my king, York, I do not mistake;
But thou mistakest me much to think I do:
To Bedlam with him! is the man grown mad?
3120

Henry VI. Ay, Clifford; a bedlam and ambitious humour
Makes him oppose himself against his king.

Lord Clifford. He is a traitor; let him to the Tower,
And chop away that factious pate of his.

Queen Margaret. He is arrested, but will not obey;
3125His sons, he says, shall give their words for him.

Richard Plantagenet (Duke of Gloucester). Look in a glass, and call thy image so:
I am thy king, and thou a false-heart traitor.
Call hither to the stake my two brave bears,
That with the very shaking of their chains
They may astonish these fell-lurking curs:
3135Bid Salisbury and Warwick come to me.

[Enter the WARWICK and SALISBURY]

Lord Clifford. Are these thy bears? we'll bait thy bears to death.
And manacle the bear-ward in their chains,
If thou darest bring them to the baiting place.
3140

Richard Plantagenet the Younger. Oft have I seen a hot o'erweening cur
Run back and bite, because he was withheld;
Who, being suffer'd with the bear's fell paw,
Hath clapp'd his tail between his legs and cried:
And such a piece of service will you do,
3145If you oppose yourselves to match Lord Warwick.

Henry VI. Why, Warwick, hath thy knee forgot to bow?
Old Salisbury, shame to thy silver hair,
Thou mad misleader of thy brain-sick son!
What, wilt thou on thy death-bed play the ruffian,
And seek for sorrow with thy spectacles?
3155O, where is faith? O, where is loyalty?
If it be banish'd from the frosty head,
Where shall it find a harbour in the earth?
Wilt thou go dig a grave to find out war,
And shame thine honourable age with blood?
3160Why art thou old, and want'st experience?
Or wherefore dost abuse it, if thou hast it?
For shame! in duty bend thy knee to me
That bows unto the grave with mickle age.

Earl of Salisbury. My lord, I have consider'd with myself
3165The title of this most renowned duke;
And in my conscience do repute his grace
The rightful heir to England's royal seat.

Earl of Salisbury. It is great sin to swear unto a sin,
But greater sin to keep a sinful oath.
Who can be bound by any solemn vow
To do a murderous deed, to rob a man,
3175To force a spotless virgin's chastity,
To reave the orphan of his patrimony,
To wring the widow from her custom'd right,
And have no other reason for this wrong
But that he was bound by a solemn oath?
3180

Earl of Warwick. You were best to go to bed and dream again,
To keep thee from the tempest of the field.

Lord Clifford. I am resolved to bear a greater storm
Than any thou canst conjure up to-day;
And that I'll write upon thy burgonet,
3190Might I but know thee by thy household badge.

Earl of Warwick. Now, by my father's badge, old Nevil's crest,
The rampant bear chain'd to the ragged staff,
This day I'll wear aloft my burgonet,
As on a mountain top the cedar shows
3195That keeps his leaves in spite of any storm,
Even to affright thee with the view thereof.

Lord Clifford. And from thy burgonet I'll rend thy bear
And tread it under foot with all contempt,
Despite the bear-ward that protects the bear.
3200

Young Clifford. And so to arms, victorious father,
To quell the rebels and their complices.